


I Got You, Babe

by Dillian



Category: Iron Man (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Ambiguous Morality, Fostiron if you squint a little, Frostiron Fest 2013, Groundhog's Day, Loki Notices, Loki and Tony Can Cooperate Sort Of, M/M, Time Loop, Tony is At First Oblivious
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-03
Updated: 2013-12-03
Packaged: 2018-01-03 01:40:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,171
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1064176
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dillian/pseuds/Dillian
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>GIFT REQUEST #1, Prompt #3:  "A Groundhog AU. Loki and Tony are trapped in a time loop of some sort and they’re the only two that realize it. This ends up with very reluctant teaming up after they both die several times and realize that they’re both in this shit together."</p><p>Filtered through my (admittedly warped) brain, what this means is that Loki is stuck.  He can't get past his first night back in Asgard, locked up in Odin's cell as punishment for his crimes, until he does ...something.  And somehow, Tony is the key.</p>
            </blockquote>





	I Got You, Babe

**Author's Note:**

  * For [kyrilu](https://archiveofourown.org/users/kyrilu/gifts).



“They say we're young and we don't know  
We won't find out until we grow.  
Well I don't know if all that's true  
'Cause you got me, and baby I got you.

Babe, I got you babe,  
I got you babe.”  
– Sonny Bono, “I Got You, Babe”

**_The Avengers_ , _Thor_ , and _Iron Man_ , and all situations and characters thereof, belong strictly and solely to Marvel Comics. This is a fan-work, meant for enjoyment only, and not for any material profit.**

“...Threaten you...” Little mortal.

“Without the suit?”

_Weak_ little mortal: “...Glowstick of destiny... – Want a drink? I'm going to have one.”

Mortal drinks too much. Mortal ...something... What? Thought just past the threshold of his mind. Shouldn't happen, he is the superior Being. His mind should be clear.

“Want a drink? I'm going to have one.” Brown liquid sloshing into a glass, mortal who looks at him, no fear on his face. “There's no throne, no version of this where you come out on top, and if we can't defend the Earth, you can be damn sure we're going to avenge it.”

 _Mortal dies._ Words that are in his mind, words that fit with nothing else there... – And where is the clarity? Why these doubts? – Words, and then events that follow rapidly. The monster has him. Bright pain, as he hits the pavement, again and again. And when he opens his eyes, one of the mortal team is missing.

What was his name?

__________________________

“I'm going to threaten you.” – _Tony_... Tony, who weareth not his suit, but faces the conqueror unarmed. Brave little mortal... What is it he should remember about Tony? –

“Without the suit?”

“Well, it had a lot of mileage on it. Something-something... Glowstick of destiny... – Want a drink?”

“Stalling will change nothing.” ...Stalling... Something... What is being stalled, and by whom? And with what purpose?

“I have an army,” sayeth the conqueror.

And respondeth the mortal: “We have a Hulk.” A Hulk. A beast, a monster. _Have a care, Loki._

Have a care... For what? No time to think. Event followeth event. Loki must control this mortal.

“...Performance issues...” Brave little Tony goes out the window, and then... And then... Loki, faced again by his brother and his mortal cohorts, dragged back in chains to Odin, condemned to rot in a prison cell for his so-called “crimes”. And in his paltry cell, his cot hard, his blanket covering meagre, Loki wills sleep. And as he closes his eyes, an image passes before them. The mortal... What was his name?

__________________________

Tony, his name was Tony.

Speaketh the Other, “The Chitauri grow restless.”

And the conqueror, “I will lead them in glorious battle.”

Glorious, not successful. ...Whence came that thought? And the mortal, Tony, what of him?

 _Because he is the one who dies..._ But many die, hundreds and hundreds of the mortal race and, of the Chitauri? Uncountable. What else was there about him that needed remembering?

“...The rightful King of Asgard, betrayed.”

“Little ambition, born of childish need. We look... Something-something...”

Tony is the brave one, the intelligent one. He dares face the conqueror unarmed, with a jest on his lips. If any can... Can _what_?

Loki must claim the mortal's mind for his own. The sceptre, _Thanos'_ sceptre. And he raises it, aims for the mortal's heart.

Cool eyes, ironic smile. “Performance issues...” 

And through the window goeth brave Tony, and then the monster comes, and then Loki is alone again, alone in Odin's cell. And he closes his eyes, and as they close, the image of Tony lingers.

__________________________

The next time, he accepts the drink. Nervous laugh, it is the first time he has shaken Tony's nerve. “What, stalling?”

Stalling... Does he know what has happened before? Does he sense it? And sayeth the Silvertongue, “Are you in such a hurry to die?”

And two glasses, filled with a beverage stronger than winter ale. And the mortal's hand brushes his as he hands one to him, but his face his hard, his eyes cold and suspicious. “How do you know I'll be the one to die?”

He is frightened, this mortal with the clever tongue, and the taste for strong drink. ...This weak, brave little mortal, who will die... “I know.” – How does he know? The Silvertongue, at a loss to give words to his knowledge. – And it is too late, and the trust leaves Tony's face. After that, the same course of events, that leads, inevitably, to the cell.

How does he die? It occurs to Loki to wonder this, as he lieth again on his cot, and listens to curses and screams, coming from neighboring cells. _How dost die, Tony? And wilt, perhaps, be more amenable the next time?_

__________________________

Brave Tony is not. Brave Tony, hearing that he will die saving his little nest of mortals, laughs in the Silvertongue's face. “Sounds like I'll finally be a hero.” And from there it is a quick path for Loki, through the hands of the monster, and into Odin's cell.

He lieth wakeful this night, and he asks himself, how can he move Tony to listen to him. Eventually, when sleep o'ercomes him (and before he waketh, again, in the hateful presence of Thanos' Other), he hath formulated a plan.

__________________________

“What have I to fear?”

“The Avengers.”

“Your super-secret boyband?” – One can learn so much through scrying, e'en closed in the confines of Odin's cell. – Rewarding, the look of surprise that crosses Brave Tony's face. “And that drink? I will have it, please.”

One drink, then a second. Sayeth the mortal. “Don't you have an army to unleash?”

 _An army._ The Chitauri... “You will kill them all.” A hand on his hand. “ _You_ , Tony.”

A look of surprise. Brief glance at Loki's hand on his, and then Brave Tony looks into his face. “T-then I'll be a hero.”

The feeling of catching something is unmistakable, the same, whether it be fish or man. “And your woman, Tony?”

Under his hand, Loki feels the mortal's muscles tighten. “Pepper. What are you planning, Loki?”

And after that, nothing. After that, anger: “You're threatening me?” And posturing: “We'll defend the Earth, or you can be damn sure we'll avenge it.” And the monster comes, and the chains, and, inevitably, Odin's cell. And the last thought in his mind as he closeth his eyes: Perhaps Brave Tony is not as intelligent as he hoped.

__________________________

“...Your woman... Hear me out.” Loki's hand, on Brave Tony's wrist. Brave Tony's eyes, widening, his face, not yet hardened in disbelief. “She is going to lose you, Stark... You are going to die.”

Stiff lips form words. “I will have...”

“You'll have died a hero. Yes, yes... Do you know how many times I have heard you say those words?”

The muscles stiffen, the eyes harden. “The hell are you talking about?”

And the Silvertongue goes to work, and Brave Tony listens. And more strong drink is poured, then more again. 

“Groundhog's Day...” A look at Loki, sight of the question in his eyes. “It's an Earth-movie. Mortals, not your thing: There was something that needed to be changed, and the day kept repeating until he changed it.” – Brave Tony has some intelligence, at least, after all. – “The question is,” sayeth he, “what needs to be changed?”

More strong drink. It affects him not, but Loki begins to feel it. “Have you told me I'm going to die before?” A nod, dizzier-feeling than he expected. “And about Pepper?”

“Yes,” sayeth Loki. “I have told all of it...” Unspoken: _Oh so many times, I have told it._ Words become difficult. And yet more drink is being poured. “No, pray...”

“Don't be silly...” Brave Tony pours. “A little more won't hurt you.”

A “little more,” that is a full glass, and Brave Tony will not drink until Loki drinks with him. It is good they are sitting, for Loki begins to feel his head swim.

“So you're saying you came back to warn me?” sayeth the brave one.

“Idon't...” The words blur, slur together. With effort, the Silvertongue keeps them distinct; with effort, he thinks. “I don't... Don't know...” 

“But why would you care?” _Not_ more drink, no. Pray, Brave Tony, leave the decanter on the table. “I'm just one more mortal. Why would you care?” A thoughtful look (blurred by the strong drink). “Unless... You want something from me, don't you?” And he pours. ... _Again_.

And the answer... It is there... If he can just get his lips – His _mind_ – to form the words. Vaguely, his hand reaches for his glass. “None, pray,” he sayeth, and Brave Tony laughs.

“Look at me, I've just gotten the World's Most Wanted drunk off his ass.” Warm hands take Loki's glass, oh, such warm, warm mortal hands. And those same hands are on his shoulders, his waist. “We'll talk later,” Tony seems to murmur.

And after this, what? The monster? The beating? Loki wakes to find himself in chains, and bound for Asgard in custody of the Thunderer. And his tongue is sharp, when faced with Odin's condemnation (but the cell, as it always, is cold and bitter). 

Cometh the dawn, and Loki waketh. He waketh, in Odin's cell, in his cold cell, with the shouts and the moans of his fellow prisoners for his only company. Faint the pleasure to be taken, in knowing he has broken the repetition. And for what? How did he do it? What, if anything, did he gain? And days go by. After the days, weeks. None come... None dare come, not e'en Frigga, who claimed to _love him_ so.

And at last, a visitor. And he bringeth news, dark, horrible news. And then after that, cometh the Thunderer.

“You would be a fool to trust me.”

“I don't,” speaketh he who called himself “brother”. Nonetheless, he releases the Trickster. They go together, find the vengeance they seek.

A small matter to fool the oaf, once their errand is accomplished. The sight of him, mourning a shadow: Ah, there is the delight he has craved. And later on, to see him grovel and kow-tow in front of the Trickster, disguised: Delight upon delight. But where is Loki to go afterward, for surely he cannot stay in Asgard. He has no taste to be discovered so quickly. 

One room. One pair of hands, that touched him once, with gentleness to them. One set of eyes, and the intelligence behind them. And he materializes, and Brave Tony's eyes widen. “Are you planning to appeal to my humanity?”

The Trickster, reduced to a supplicant. “Will it do any good?”

“Maybe.” Two glasses, and the mortal drink to fill them. He passes one, raises the other in salute. “At least I have some humanity.” Brave Tony drinks. “The portal. What was behind it: What was that place called?”

The mortal drink, memorably strong. Loki drinks, but gingerly. “Thanos' realm.”

“You saw it?”

A nod. Another sip, a small one. “I lived there for a time.”

A gulp, on Brave Tony's part. “No wonder you were fuckin' nuts when you got here the other time.” He takes the decanter, takes Loki's arm with his free hand, brings both over to the sofa. “You escaped from jail, huh?”

The sofa, soft, comfortable, the drink, warming, albeit over-strong. Loki nods. “And you're going to turn me in?”

Tony drinks, pours again for both of them. A shrug. “I should, shouldn't I? Just like you should have gone up there and _gotten_ me. Vague warning: 'Oh, you're going to _die_...' Not very helpful, Reindeer Games. You couldn't be more specific?”

Reindeer Games... Loki drinks, holds his glass out for more. “You got out all right.”

And Tony pours. “No thanks to you.” And he settles more comfortably into the sofa. And puts an arm around Loki's shoulders. “You'd better be gone in the morning.”

Comfortable, to settle closer. Comfortable too, to drink of the strong, mortal ale, without thought of consequences. “What about tonight?”

A shrug, a smile, an arm, tighter around Loki's shoulder. “I dunno. You did appeal to my humanity.” The warmth, of his body next to Loki's. The small gurgling sound, that is their glasses, being refilled. “Humans don't always notice stuff.” He raises the decanter. “Especially drunk humans. – Want to share a pizza, Loki?”

A nod. Whatever a “pizza” is, Loki will share one. “I did save you.”

“Ha.” Tony raises his glass, touches it to Loki's. “One vague, general warning. I'm the one that figured it out.”

Gently, the Trickster toucheth glasses back. “You _fell_.”

And they are very close, and somehow he is leaning against Tony's shoulder. “I fell like a genius.”

And the strong drink is very strong, and the pizza is better than one would have expected mortal food to be. And Loki leaves the penthouse in the morning, spirits fresh and body strong, for the work of re-taking his throne. And, leaving, he gives thought to Brave Tony, who has fulfilled the purpose he saved him for.


End file.
